Ice
by Bluetory
Summary: 3 years later, Sapphy has started a new life in London. Faro never kept his promise of coming back for her, and she's sworn to put it all behind her. But one day, on a two week trip back to Cornwall, she finds that Faro has come back... human? R&R "ICE."
1. High Tide

_Here, I deliver you a very new fanfiction. I haven't been continuing my other fanfictions, not because I've lost interest, but because I'm at a loss for what to do. Writing is a bit like playing chess, don't you think? Make a single wrong move, and you've basically ruined it all. _

_Maybe I'll go back and do some editing?_

_I found the idea of mermaids interesting, and it takes me back to the time I read Ingo. I really liked it, and I thought I could play around with the idea… But then I thought, screw all, let's write a fanfiction. I haven't read Ingo for a long LONG time, so if I make any mistakes on detail, please correct me. I cannot for the life of me remember any factual detail AT ALL, so shoot me. T T ... Also, I normally mimic the author's style of writing when writing a fanfiction, but I have not got a clue how Helen Dunmore wrote. SO, please bear with my wretched writing style, and I hope you'll enjoy it, even a little! _

_(I also apologise for any OOCness, apology~ apology~ apology~~)_

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><p><strong>Ice. <strong>Chapter 1

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><p>Once upon a time, I used to dream about childish things.<p>

I thought that if I wished for something hard enough it could come true and, for some absurd reason, I also believed that people kept their promises.

I guess I should have learnt better when my father died.

Sometimes, I stare out of my bedroom window of our ugly new house in London and I imagine that the stars I see in the sky are the same stars I saw when I was looking up from the ocean with Faro.

Whenever I close my eyes, I am swimming with the dolphins with Faro next to me, and we're laughing effortlessly, untroubled, and all I can see are Faro's even white teeth and his thick dark hair streaming out behind him.

But when I dream, I dream of nothing, because I never want to dream of things so childish again.

"_I promise to be back soon, little sister. And when I am, I'll take you with me."_

But it's been three years already, Faro, and Ingo has forgotten me completely.

Xx**X**xX

"Remember to write back when you get there!"

"We will."

I am standing at the half empty London train station with Connor, mum and my mother's boyfriend, Roger. The cool winter air blows around me, and I wrap my coat and scarf around myself tighter. It is ridiculously early, and only a few travellers walk past us on their daily business.

"Connor, look after your sister!"

Connor glances my way briefly before responding, "I'll do my best, but Sapphy doesn't need much looking after, and she'll eat me alive if I try!"

Everyone laughs at this, and my mother gives me a warm hug. "Oh look at you," She says, once she has finally let go, "Going off all that way on your own! Are you really going to be okay?"

I feel my cheeks burning up, and I attempt to untangle my arm from my mothers grip. "I'm sixteen already, mum! I'm old enough to handle myself; besides, I've been gallivanting around the cove for years now!"

She continues to stare at me worriedly and begins to adjust my coat collar. "And I've got Connor with me, anyway. He won't let anything happen." I add hastily.

She sighs and relaxes slightly, "Yes, I guess you're right. Perhaps… Perhaps I'm worrying myself over nothing. You've always been a very independent child, Sapphire."

She lets go of my arm and turns to Connor, starting to fuss over his clothes now. Connor catches me staring and pulls a face.

"Going all the way back to Cornwall, huh?" Roger catches me by surprise, and he laughs.

I smile ruefully back and shrug, "I never even wanted to leave." I reply truthfully.

He regards me with a steady, suddenly serious eye, and clasps me on the shoulder. "In all honesty, I never wanted to leave either."

I stare up at him, with my breath baited, "Why did we leave then?" I ask, wondering if he was going to answer the question I'd asked my mother so many times before, without a decent reply.

"Well…" He glances in my mother's direction, who was preoccupied with making a list of all the things Connor had to do when we got back to Cornwall.

We're out of her hearing range, but we walk a little further away just in case.

"She said…" he pauses, "She said that staying there, so near your memories wasn't good for you Sapphire. And with all the trauma and the flooding that happened… To keep you and Connor safe, we had to move away. And… I… I saw sense in that." He bows his head a little, embarrassed. "I shouldn't have made that decision for you, and I apologise."

I nod slowly, accepting his apology, "No - I couldn't have been helped." I say.

"No." He smiles sadly.

The train heading for Cornwall finally pulls up with a loud whooshing sound, and the doors open. A few passengers step out with their large bags and luggage, which look massive compared to what we decided to pack. Connor was content in bringing the basics for the two weeks we were to stay there, and I just didn't have anything else I wanted to bring.

We wave our final goodbyes to Roger and mum, who looks like she is on the verge of tears, and step aboard the train.

"Let's go back home," says Connor grinning.

It takes me by surprise. "It's not home anymore Connor," I reply, "We live in London now."

"Home is where the heart is, Sapphy. And as much as I love London, it's not my home."

We watch as the train doors slide to a close behind us and we take a seat, pushing our big luggage up onto the luggage racks. The train starts to move, and Roger and mum blur out of view, waving all the time.

I wave back, but it's too late, and they're snatched out of my line of vision. My hand droops, and I hug my bag to myself closely, suddenly feeling sad.

"Cornwall brings back too many memories, Connor." I say after a while, echoing Roger's words, "Some memories I don't want to remember."

But he's asleep already.

Xx**X**xX

We've been living in London for half a year now. 5 months and fourteen days. Undoubtedly, it sounds sad, but I can't even help it anymore. Subconsciously, I've been counting the days since we last were in Cornwall.

And since I last saw the sea.

They have a river here in London, its true, but it's not the same. I have walked past the River Thames before, and looking down, it just seems so different. I just can't relate Ingo to the river here.

But then again, ever since I last saw Faro, I cannot seem to relate Ingo to anything. When I last saw Faro, he left telling me that he'd return for me; and that I could go to Ingo with him, and there, I could decide if I wanted to stay in Ingo and become mer, just like father did or remain human. It was a big deal, and I was going to break it to him that I could not. I was sure I knew what my answer was then, but I'm not so sure anymore.

Time in Ingo works differently to time on land, so I knew he would be a while. I gave him a month. When he did not return then, I gave him two, then three, then four, and before I knew it, I had waited every day, after school and in the mornings, by the sea in the cove for a year. I changed my mind a lot through all that time and the time that followed. For a while, I had decided that I wanted to become mer after all, if that was all it took for Faro to appear again. I had kept on that, waiting and waiting.

He haunted my dreams sometimes, and my conscious. I missed him. I longed for him and Ingo.

Connor had heard nothing from Elvira either, but he had given up already. Something I refused to do.

He claimed it was all a dream, but I don't understand how he could say that. I knew he was hiding something - I knew him well enough to tell that - but I could not grasp at what.

It was my fault, really, that we moved to London in the end. One day, after school, I waited by the cove longer than I usually did, and stupidly, I fell asleep. The tide rose up around me, and by the time Connor found me, I was soaked, cold and I had caught a slight fever.

It was not much, but that set my mother off completely. The very next day, she had told us that she had booked a one way train journey to London for the next week, when I got better.

It was odd. I was sure she didn't know about my goings to the cove as I had concealed them very well, and I was so sure that Connor had not told her. She said she had another reason, but she would not tell me what, and apparently, she had not told Roger either.

Either way, no one could argue. We packed all our bags, and the next week, with only fleeting, sudden goodbyes with our old neighbours and friends in Cornwall, we left.

It's been a while since then.

Now I do not feel as much as I do for Ingo. Only the lies and deceit leave bitter tastes in my mouth.

I have gotten better in the last half year I have been in London. So much so on the outside, that my mother has finally allowed me to take this journey with Connor back to Cornwall to visit Rainbow and Granny Carne and everyone else left back there - as they could not come to visit us, and mum and Roger cannot leave work.

Ingo is a mere memory to me now. It was a time long ago, and for now on, to me, only the present will really matter.

Xx**X**xX

Connor is right. Cornwall feels more like home than London ever was.

We get here at dark, three hours later than the time we were expecting. The leaflet we were given was not all accurate, after all. I give a sigh, but Connor just laughs.

It's like we are being plunged into a completely new world. Everything is different. Where London is all bright and loud, with sky scraping buildings and tall flats from everywhere the eye can see, Cornwall is green, and natural, and quiet. And I feel like I finally belong again.

We enter our old house, and it's dark. We, meaning me, Connor and Roger convinced mum not to sell the house, and I'm glad we did that. She argued back about money and rents and bills, but deep inside, I could tell she didn't want to sell it either.

She has finally put dad behind, just like Connor put Elvira behind, and I put Faro behind, but the house is still special. It holds memories. Some were nice, some not so much.

But it's history now.

After we have unpacked all of our bags we stand in the empty corridor, regarding what used to be the living room.

"This feels weird." Connor says flatly.

I nod in agreement, and start flicking through my bags again, when Connors mobile rings.

"It was Rainbow," He tells me, "She called a little earlier, and I promised that we'd visit her once we arrived."

"Let's go now then," I tell him, smiling, "I want to see her too!"

Connor laughs, and puts into his bag the presents we bought for Rainbow from London. I have missed Rainbow; and in all honesty, she was one of the people I had missed most while we were away. We have talked over the phone, but it was just not the same. I miss her most along with Sadie. We had to leave her behind with Rainbow as the journey would have been too tough on her. Granny Carne had offered to look after her if no one else was willing before, but I did not want to leave another responsibility in her hands, no matter how strong and reliable she was. Besides, Rainbow liked Sadie.

We leave the house, slipping on our thick woollen coats to keep the worst of the winter breeze out. I look around us, but in winter, the days seem shorter, and it looks as dark as midnight already.

I am in awe of our surroundings still: the moon in the sky is clearly visible and it bathes everything in a milky glow.

We talk briefly about the plan that our mother set us, visiting all our old friends in Cornwall and delivering the gifts she prepared for them, our breath forming little clouds of mist in front of us; but half way on the path to Rainbow's house, Connor suddenly stops and swears loudly. I laugh as he looks apologetically at me.

"Sorry, Sapphy, I just realized, we can bring Granny Carne's honey and jam jars with us today along with Rainbow's presents. It would save us from bringing all those other things for her as well tomorrow, wouldn't it?"

"But it's too late now, isn't it?"

"Not yet, just take my bag for me, and I'll run back to the house as fast as I can. Keep on walking to Rainbow's, and I'll meet you half way, okay?"

I agree, and he hands me his bag which I shoulder.

"Are you going to be okay?" He asks as he hand it to me.

"I'll be fine."

"If you're in trouble or need help or anything, just call me okay? I'll be as fast as I can."

I roll my eyes at this, and watch Connor disappear from view, the night engulfing him.

I carry down the path on my own. In the night, I can clearly hear the crickets chirping. Apart from that, I am met with silence, except…

I hear the rushing of the sea, not far off, and…

I cannot help but walk a little off the path and look out into the distance. I am at an entrance to the cove. Connor and I had taken this way in before, a long time ago, but I had forgotten.

The quell of the shimmering waves in the moonlight calls to me, not in the way that Ingo called, but as it had called when I was a child.

I so want to go down.

I want to feel the sand beneath my feet, the feeling of the water lapping at my heels, but I can't. And I won't.

So I turn and make my way back to the path, but-

But something, an oddity amongst the smooth curves of the tops of the rocks further out at sea, catches my eye.

I see a silhouette of a figure far out in the distance on the rocks and my heart skips a beat; but then the figure stands up, and my excitement turns to bleak disappointment.

It cannot be who I had hoped it to be. It is not Faro.

Defeated, I start to carry on walking down the path, but something tugs at my conscience.

Something.

_It's high tide tonight, Sapphy. Do you know what that means? Don't go out to the beach tonight Sapphy. The tide is faster than you can run, and it will catch you. You can't run, and you can't hide. So don't go out on the beach tonight._

Tonight is high tide.

My mother and father had warned me against the tide countless times. _You can't run and you can't hide._

If the person on the rocks does not move soon, the tide will come in and engulf them, and they will have no chance. The currents are unmerciful at the best of times and that person will be smashed against the rocks again and again, and their death will be drawn out and painful.

_So don't go out on the beach tonight._

The figure remains as still as a statue, motionless, as if waiting for something. They seem to have no intent to move.

They must be a tourist, a visitor, a short time resident. They must be, because everybody else knows better than to go out on the rocks on a night with high tide.

"Excuse me!" I shout to them. But my voice does not carry, and they make no indication that they've heard me.

I try again to the same result.

The tides will soon be drawn in.

_Don't go out on the beach tonight, Sapphy. Always remember what I say._

But I must warn him.

Running down the muddy path to the cove, I scramble down the routes blocked by overgrown pieces of bracken that had not been here before when Connor and I still lived in Cornwall. Pushing the spikes out of my way, I manage to get across, but my hands are bloodied and raw, and there is a long, deep scratch on my upper forearm. Blood wells up, and although it stings beyond belief, I have no time to do anything about it. Taking a deep breath, I plunge into the rising sea, hoping that Ingo will take me back.

Xx**X**xX

It doesn't.

I know it the moment I penetrate the surface of the water.

It feels all wrong. The way the waves resist me, and push me back up. It's so unlike the times I entered Ingo. They're not welcoming me. The doors of Ingo have been shut to me, and I cannot get in.

I try to raise my head above the water, but I cannot do even that. The water is everywhere, the salt stinging my cuts and hurting my eyes. The sea has taken away my sense of up and down and right and left.

I am completely at its mercy.

_The sea will catch you._

It is at this point that I realize that I am going to die. The idea was stupid. It was ridiculous. Why did I think that _I _could beat the tide? I should have called someone to help instead of just plunging in myself; I should have thought twice; I should have… I should have… _I should…_

But reprimanding myself is useless, and I give in to panic.

The tide is too strong for me to fight it. If I thrash around, it thrashes back, harder.

I feel myself sinking deeper, and deeper down. I will not survive, I am going to die. I could not save the person on the rocks. We will both die because of my stupidity. We are-

A strong arm grabs me from behind, and I am lifted and dragged up to the surface gasping, and to the welcoming sight of land. I clutch at the wet, cold sand and I nearly fall onto the hard pebbles below me. I cough and cough until I feel as if I have got every last inch of the salt out of my lungs, out of my system, out of _me_. Then I-

"How can you be so _stupid_?" The sudden voice above me stops me immediately as if in a trance. The flowing sound of the water rising around us fades from my ears, and all I can hear is my heartbeat and the echo of his voice in my ears. It's a voice I know too well, the voice I've been hearing everywhere, the voice I've been _wanting_ to hear everywhere.

And then, painfully, I force myself to look up and I see the face that has been dominating my existence and thoughts for the last three years leaning above me. It's the same sharp curve of the chin - the same dark, deep set eyes and the same perfect straight white teeth bared in a grimace.

And the same thick wet dark hair almost the same shade of brown as mine.

It can't be. It is not possibly-

But it is.

Unbelievably - unthinkably; it _is_ Faro.

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><p><em>Ho Sho, this was the longest chapter that I have ever written. I wrote it over the period of two days ppls :O Don't expect all the chapters to be like this. Was it boring? Was it too long? Was it incredibly stupid? Please leave a review and tell me how I can improve my writing. I personally think it has deteriorated. Like a cookie when I smash it up and cook its crumbs. <em>

_ALSO, reviews help me write the next chapter (HINT HINT) They are not essential, but they do help, and I will be grateful. (Is it just me or does that word look like grapefruit? Which reminds me of the time I was tricked into eating a grapefruit and it was nightmarish)._

_Oh, and don't ever bake KitKats and Rolos, they are gross in cakes. How on earth do the supermarkets do it?_

**ANNOUNCEMENT**: I have been thinking as I was proofreading, since I am a fail with continuing, does everyone think I should just leave it as an oneshot? I mean, I would like to finish it, but if my writing is undesirable, and the plot is too boring, should I just leave it like this? Because otherwise, it would be a disappointment. Thank you :'O


	2. The Boy From The Sea

_Extremely late update, but my exams this year are absolutely killing me D': But next year is worse, so I'll just bear with it and fight my way through!  
><em>_As a breif answer to all your previous lovely reviewers,_ I am planning a romance :)_  
><em>_And as for my sentances that need fixing up, please help me fix them up? D: I have been told this frequently, but I have no idea where I should change something! If you could tell me, I will improve it, but I cannot read any wrongs in my writing as of now :(  
><em>_Also, I have actually done 4 drafts of this chapter, scrapping each one as I go along. I am STILL furious with this chapter, and I will probably write it again. :( Brain! Y u no let me succeed?_

_Please leave your reviews to tell me what you think! ^^ **Be truthful!** If it's bad, tell me, if you want the plot to hurry up, please say! If its boring(I know I tend to go off on a tangent), I will do my best (and redraft) to make it more interesting! I love criticism! XD Thank you all very much! :)_

**I label this the worst chapter I have ever written. Period.**_  
><em>

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><p><strong>Ice.<strong> Chapter 2

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><p>It's Faro, but at the same time, it's not.<p>

It's Faro, because I know it's him. I am so certain.

His likeliness has appeared in my mind all along; all these three long years, but that wasn't him. The smile that beckoned to me whenever I let my mind wander, the laugh that rang in my ears rendering me speechless, the intensity of those dark chocolate eyes. That wasn't him.

It wasn't real.

The real thing kneels in front of me, he kneels, gasping, his streaming, thick, dark brown hair in disarray, drenching wet from the sea. He coughs, trying to regain his breath, and glares at me, almost scowling. He's released my arm now but I can hardly tell. I feel light headed, cold. I feel so cold. So cold, although I can't feel the sand beneath me through the overwhelming icy, numb feeling spreading throughout my body like a sea of daggers.

"You..." His voice sends electric sparks running through my veins. I stare, bewitched at his sudden, strangely agonizing beauty. I want to reach out and touch him before he disappears like he did before. A jolt of fear passes through me. I don't want to let him go again. I don't want to lose him, like I did last time. I want to reach out to hold him. I so want to reach out...

But instead, I shrink back.

He has legs. It cannot be him. No logic stands behind it. Faro is mer. And yet...

"You... are so stupid, little sister."

He finally regains his breath and looks away angrily.

I don't know what to say.

But what can I say? Something witty? Funny? I can't. I want to ask him why he's been gone for so long. I want to ask him the questions that had - at first made stay beside the cove every day, with every spare second I had, the questions that waited for me around every corner, that lurked at every turn, the ones that haunted me during the day and kept me awake at night. The endless questions I had formulated and so carefully put together in my mind.

But now, as I try to grasp even one thing to say, nothing comes together. My mind is a mess of false starts, aimless, drifting words that don't make sense, even to my own bewildered mind.

Faro is still sitting, turned away from me as he was before, but now, his head bent down and his arms wrapped around his knees. I see the slight movement of his bare upper back as he breathes. His bare upper back... and lower back... and... oh... I feel a alarmingly warm blush creeping up in my cheeks as I realize that he is completely unclothed. Dizzy, I quickly turn away, averting my eyes, feeling suddenly ridiculous for no apparent reason at all.

The cold is really getting to me now. I shiver. There is no breeze, and my fingers are too numb to feel much else. The moon really has encased everything in a soft blue coloured layer, making everything look different and strange. I have entered a completely dreamy state where nothing feels real, and everything distinct has just blended together. I clench and unclench my hands, trying to get some feeling into them, and I spot my cut along my arm from earlier. It seems to have gotten longer, but maybe that is just the blood marks streaking down the sides. It doesn't hurt, and the blood looks fake, almost purple coloured in the blue tone the moon casts. The wet texture of my blood - or, perhaps is it the water from the sea - reflects the light of the moon, making tiny faint lights on the surface of my skin. I stare at it, oddly entranced, until I see a hand entering my line of vision take my injured arm. I look up.

Faro kneels in front of me, looking at the cut with a strange expression on his face. I keep my eyes trained on his face, not daring to look down, fearing a blush coming up again.

"You're hurt." He says.

I shake my head and attempt to untangle my arm to no avail.

"No." I manage. My voice is a croak from not speaking for so long. I clear my throat and try again. "I'm fine."

He doesn't let go.

"Why were you gone so long?" I find myself saying. The words don't sound like mine. The voice is alien.

Faro stares at me. "How long have I been gone?"

"I-"

I stop at the sudden crescendo of voices behind me. They are fast approaching and I see that Faro's eyes are fixed on something over my shoulder.

A painfully loud thrashing of leaves and a tremulous yelp sounds behind me and I whip my head around in alarm to see a scruffy looking - and although tinted blue from the light of the moon - unmistakable, endearing head of Sadie, my gorgeous golden retriever covered in a coat of leaves and bits of branches, looking like she'd just fallen out of the hedge behind her. She scrambles up, tail wagging and barking loudly, and runs, in a sort of clumsy, agitated fashion towards me.

My heart soars at the sight of Sadie there, and standing shakily up, I reach out to embrace her, but she stops suddenly, just an arms breadth away from me, fixated on something behind me. She gives something half way between a whimper and a snarl and starts to limp backwards, her tail drooping. I follow her gaze and meet Faro's glare aimed straight back at her.

I feel uneasy. Faro might have legs now, but he's still part of Ingo; still part of the sea.

"Sapphy!" The voices catch me by surprise, and I see Faro's eyes flicker, alarmed, up, towards the direction of the suddenly appearing voices. They are considerably louder now.

"Sapphire Trewhella!" The voices are coming from the steep looking slope I came down earlier, nearly obscured by the hedge Sadie had fallen through. "Sadie! Sadie, where are you?" "Sapphire Trewhella!" I don't recognise a few of the voices, and I am momentarily confused as to why they are even calling my name, when I recall earlier, when I was walking with Connor towards Rainbow and Granny Carne's houses.

Alarm courses through me, and my mind buzzes, trying to make sense of everything. I can't have been here for too long. All that has happened could have taken place under a period of fifteen minutes. The journey to Rainbows house would definitely take longer, as I recall. I am sure that is right. So why would they come out looking for me? _Then how long have I been here?_ and finally, _What should I do?_

"Sadie!" This is clearly Connor's voice. I glance in the direction wildly, but before I can act upon it, Sadie lets out a series of barks, as if calling out for help. "Wait a moment, Sadie!" he calls in reply, "I'll find a way down!"

"I think she's found a trail," I hear him shout out to the people with him. They give a positive sounding reply. By the sound of it, half the village is here, and their constant chatter and calls shock me from my stupor.

I shake myself back into my senses. "Connor, I'm here!" I manage to call. It still doesn't feel like mine at all, and I swallow, trying again, "Connor! It's Sapphy!"

The villagers above seemed to have picked up on my voice, and I hear my name being called out again in excitement; people are milling round this edge of the cove slope now, obscured by the overgrown hedges and bracken and ancient trees, with their countless unrelenting roots surviving even the roughest of landscapes, and the tough young saplings.

"Sapphy!" I finally hear Connors voice. It's a little further away now. "Are you down there?"

I shout out in consent, and I feel Sadie rub her head against my hand, in a sort of attempt at comforting me. I am glad for it, and I rub her silky fur between my fingers. If she was not here, I don't know what I'd do in panic. I don't want to be alone.

But that's right, I'm not alone. It hits me as I remember Faro, and I turn my head round wildly, in search of the lean built man. He is nowhere in sight, and I feel confusion biting into me. He was right there a minute ago.

Or... was it all just in my head?

"Sapphy!" The proximity of Connors' voice shocks me back into attention of my surroundings, and I swivel in the vague direction of where he is coming from. He has finally made it down, voice fierce with the aftershock of fear, his hair messy and tangled with leaves, clothes roughed up, and a series of small angry scratches on his cheek, probably from his descent down. He comes towards me at a run, "Sapphy, you're alright. Oh, thank God you're alright. Don't you dare to _ever_ do that again." Once he reaches me, he grabs my shoulders and gives me a little, urgent shake, "You hear me? _Never again_."

I seem to be being shaken a lot today.

"Never again, Sapphy. Say it."

"Never again," I repeat in agreement. I don't want to talk really; it's too unsettling to be hearing your own voice when it sounds so distant. I still haven't gotten over that, but Connor's verging on hysteria, which surprises me, as it's my calm, honest, understanding brother, and I do it for him.

"What happened to you?" Connor finally takes me in. He stares at my wet, soaking hair which reeks of the sea, my drenched clothes that cling to my skin, and the long, bloodied cut on my arm. The frown is evident on his face, "What did you do?"

More scrambling and the dragging and rustling of leaves sound before I can answer, and I hear more voices making the descent down the slope. I got down with a run, and how I managed to survive the descent with only the scratches I have is beyond me.

Some more people have gotten down now, more villagers, armed with bags of what looked like supplies, first aid kits and blankets. _They are well prepared for this type of thing,_ I vaguely think. Then, _of course they are. Every time somebody goes missing around here, everyone suspects an accident._ It was the way things work. With the sea so close by - with the high tide, of course there had to be a degree of paranoia. And that was not including the thought of the rocks out there in the sea. The villagers crowd round me, pushing Connor out of the way. Somebody drapes a blanket around my suddenly shaking shoulders, and they're talking in their loud, loud voices, and running around in their reckless, thundering footsteps. It seems like a decade since I last heard civilization - which is ironic since we just got back from London, with it's blaring music, and the deafening yells of countless city dwellers. A police force seems to be here, and I spot a few large black dogs that make Sadie look genteel in comparison. A policeman, the man who had pushed Connor away, is suddenly kneeling in front of me, holding a piece of paper attached to a board in front of him. He is speaking to me, his hands making wild gestures that are probably supposed to help me understand him more, but I cannot even hear him. My mind has gone blank, and I simply stare dumbly at this waving hands. He might as well be speaking in sign language.

"_Sapphire_!" Rainbow appears out of nowhere, pushing through the crowd. It's when I have to stare up at her, that I realize that I have fallen to the ground.

Comfortingly, she hasn't changed at all and kneeling, she pulls me into a tight hug. "What happened? Are you alright? Are you hurt? Everyone has been out looking for you for hours and hours! We circled the cove, because that's where we thought you'd be, but we couldn't see anything, but we were so worried and we thought you'd be there for sure, and we remembered that tonight was high tide, so we called the police after the first hour, maybe we should have called earlier but, I mean, we didn't want to because Connor said you could just have taken a wrong turn, but I didn't believe that for a second, and neither did he, and - _oh_!" Rainbow takes a long gulp, and I can hear her holding back her tears.

I pat her on the back, attempting to calm her, and my mind whizzes. My head feels clearer than it has for ages now; the dizziness mostly gone and apprehension taking its place.

Granny Carne comes into view, yanking her arm out of the grip of a young man looking like he was attempting to escort her, worry etched onto her wizened face. Connor pushes back into the crowd, past the madly gesturing policeman, and along with Rainbow, he helps to pull me up.

I am surrounded with semi-familiar faces, all talking to me, all asking me questions that I cannot hear, cannot take in at all. I block them out, because at the moment, it's too much, and I ask the question in my cracked, dry voice, the one that I never gave the answer to.

"How long have I been gone?"

Xx**X**xX

Five hours.

That's how long they say my rescue mission took. Actually, it was four. That's how long they were out searching for me. Of course, the four hours wasn't including the time it took for them to notice I was actually gone, actually "_lost_", as they put it. Connor had gone back home, picked up the jars, walked back down the path a third time, arrived at Rainbow's house as we had agreed, and, seeing that I wasn't there, and Rainbow had no clue where I was, they had gone out, walking back down the trail, looking out for me, thinking I was possibly took a wrong turn somewhere.

According to Rainbow's account, they looked down into the cove and shouted my name a few times, without a reply. I can't say I heard them, but then again, I was probably drowning in the sea at that time, and couldn't hear them. Then, realizing that there was no trace of me at all, they knocked on a few villagers doors that lived around the area, where they thought I could be lost and asked there. Nobody had seen me, but everyone all came out to help look for me. Word travelled fast, and soon somebody had alerted the police too. When they had made their way back to Rainbow's house, they realized that somebody should have asked Granny Carne too, and according to the words of another villager, chipping into the story, she knew exactly where I was. Where I must be.

So they all went down to the cove. Sadie had barked to be allowed to come too, and along with half the village that had woken up, and a few dispatched police officers with their task force sniffing dogs - which Sadie had not liked at all - they made it here, with Sadie running down first, as if knowing exactly where I was. And I know the rest of the story from then.

So five hours, basically.

Most of the villagers have gone now; it's late after all. We set out at around seven, and after the nights' affairs, it's well past one o'clock midnight.

The silence after nearly everybody leaving is more comforting than I would have imagined.

I sit in the living room, with the same blanket they had draped over my shoulders. Connor sits dozing, in an armchair near our fireplace. That used to be Roger's armchair. One of our close neighbours, Marissa, who used to be friends with my mother, lies down on the couch. She offered to stay here with us for the night, "just in case".

I know from the silence that followed and Marissa's pursed lips and knowing look directed towards me, what she meant by the term "just in case". In case I ran off again, in case I "_tried to jump again_".

It wasn't until I finally got hold of myself that I understood the reason for the police officers surrounding us, interrogating Connor, Rainbow, _everything_. From what they had seen, from my history here (they had been alerted by a long time resident here about my past goings to the cove) my drenched hair, my wild eyes, my visible light headedness and my cold shock that I had experienced after seeing Faro, coupled with the fact that I, somebody who has grown up beside the sea, would go into the sea on a night of high tide; - they had concluded, unsurprisingly, that I was suicidal.

"It happens to the best of us, it does," I heard a middle aged woman with a pink handbag say, as I was set on the sofa back home by some official looking people earlier this night, "My cousin, and this part is true, she says so herself, my cousin, who is such a sweet, nice woman fell victim to that horrible disease too," she huddled closer to the other women standing around her, gossiping intently, "the doctors called it _clinical depression_, but all she did was want to end it all!" She waved her hands around for effect, "Nothing clinical about it! Suicide!" Her friends had shushed her for being so loud, but not before shooting darting glances at me, confirming that I was, indeed the subject of their gossip.

I wanted to laugh at first. It was like a huge, ironic joke. And I knew that nobody would believe such a tale. Especially not Connor or Rainbow. But as I looked at them, they only looked away, hurriedly.

"What?" I had said to Rainbow earlier, when I finally managed to muster up my voice.

"Nothing, it's nothing. Just get some rest ok? Do you want to take a shower?"

"Not now."

"Then it's nothing."

Of course it would be nothing.

I guess I could tell them about Faro, about him being on the cliffs, or at least _somebody_ on the cliffs, but I know I can't. I don't want to risk them thinking I was crazier than they already do. It would take too much explaining, and the moment I mention anything about "Mer", they would officially label me as mental hospital worthy. Even Connor, who has neglected to ever believe that Elvira and Ingo are anything more than a memory.

And I could do without that.

So I seal my mouth shut and let them believe what they want.

Xx**X**xX

I wake as soon as the first rays of light penetrate the roughly drawn curtains.

I lie in confusion until I remember what happened last night. It's like I'm looking back on a dream. And a fragmented one, at that. I feel positively ridiculous, thinking back. _Suicide, a human Faro_. Ugh.

I cast my eyes up over at a small digital clock somebody had placed beside the sofa I am lying on. The clock shows 08:39 in black, square numbers, and the small words 'SAT' at the top right hand corner of the display. I swing my legs round to the floor, and breathe out slowly. Time to get up.

Connor is gone from the armchair, but Marissa still lies, fast asleep on the sofa next to mine. I decide not to wake her, and make my way slowly, muscles that I never knew I had aching all over my body, to my room upstairs.

Connor and I did not get to look back around the house before we left to give the presents to Rainbow and Granny Carne, and this feels way overdue. Somebody has been up here earlier, probably one of the police people from last night, checking for any evidence contributing to my 'suicidal actions', and I don't like it. When I enter my room, I find that somebody has also left my bags piled neatly in the corner of my room.

My bed looks untouched, as does everything else. It looks the same though, as I remember. It's empty, bed stripped bare, the walls desolate and devoid of life, but it looks familiar, and I'm glad for it.

Somebody has left the window open, though, to air it out, and a cool winter breeze drifts into the room.

Shivering, I walk over to close it, but, like yesterday, the sight of the sea stops me in my tracks. There is no calling, no pulling, but it catches me, as if in a woven net and I look out, trapped. What happened yesterday, _all that happened_ - it could not have been a dream.

I am as sure of it. It couldn't have _not_ happened.

It doesn't make any sense for it to not have been. I mean, sure, it doesn't make much sense if it _did, _but, but… I make no sense to myself, but a grinding sort of anxiety has gripped me now, and a gut instinct, no an _instinct_ is making me think-

I still smell the sea on myself. I dived into the sea on high tide. It was absolutely stupid for me to do it, but I did it to help somebody. And that person, and I'm _so sure_, saved me in the end, and now I'm alive, so, so it means-

Maybe… maybe? The apprehension is so high I cannot take it anymore. My heart is in my throat, because I am_ so, so, so sure_.

I am running out of my room and down the stairs before I know it. Two at the time, no - three at a time - I'd jump down the whole staircase if I could.

Yesterday was _not a dream_. Which means _Faro may actually be there_.

_Faro may be there_.

He… might-

Faro is there!

I don't care that my hair is tangled and messy, I don't care I'm running out in the clothes I had on yesterday, the clothes I fell asleep in, that I had refused to change out of. I am simply beyond caring. I just want to see Faro.

Throwing open the front door of my house, I am about to take the first step out, when my path is blocked by a towering shadow. Another villager or something. Probably. I attempt to look up, but their head is blocking the sun, and all I can see is a huge halo around their head. They look like some holy monument or something, but I don't want to waste anymore time. I want to see the sea.

"Excuse me," I say, motioning to get past them.

"Are you Sapphire Trewhella?" He's got a deep voice, but he can't be much older than me. He's got a thick accent, but, being uninterested and uneducated in this type of thing, I can't tell where he is from. The one thing for sure is I have never met him before in my life.

"Yes," I manage, "Now, if you'll excuse me…"

"I'm Blake, nice to meet you, Trewhella," He extends a hand, which I take, exasperated, "Are you sure you want to be going out again? There are some people still out round the beach part, and I don't think it'll be that great if they saw you, after all that yesterday. They're thinking some crazy stuff now. You know what I mean?"

This is making me uneasy. If there really _are_ people there, and Faro is there, then…

I have to go.

"I'm not going there at all," I lie, letting go of his hand, "I just wanted some fresh air."

"Ok, Trewhella, just a warning. Oh, and I came to check up on you. You ok now?"

"Fine," I say, willing him to move. Soon.

"Ok, ok, I'm going now, Trewhella," Blake moves out of my way now, with his hands up, as if in mock defence. I finally manage to see his face as he walks away, not being cast in shadow. He drops his hands and half turns to me, giving me a small crooked smile. His hair, which I now see to be golden blonde, glows in the sunlight.

"Have fun with your walk. Or your beach trip." He smiles one last time and steps over the fence that separates our house from the house next door, "Either way. Knock if you need anything, neighbour." With that, he winks at me and opens the door to our neighbour's house, steps in, and shuts it behind him with a click.

I stand, stunned, then furious.

I never knew our old neighbour had moved. But saying that, ever since we, ourselves, had moved to London, we hardly were able to know any of the news from here. I snap myself back into the present. Blake, huh? The _nerve_. But I'm determined to not let that hinder me; I pick up my pace now, and head towards the beach nearly running.

I'm not in a great shape after yesterday night. I can tell when I trip over for the third time. My limbs still feel the fatigue that my mind is missing out on.

When I fall the forth time, a hand clasps my shoulder and I look up, surprised, too winded to feel any dread, wondering who it could be this time. Blake? No, it couldn't be.

I'm not surprised to see Granny Carne.

"Where are you running to, Sapphire? You seem to be in a hurry."

I struggle to think of a reply, so I say nothing.

"You don't have to answer, so don't worry. You have the markings of Ingo on you, even bringer than before. I expected them to have died down, or even gone, but they're still there. Anyone who knows what to look for can see it on you."

"You haven't seen me in a long time," I say. My voice has an edge of fear on it that I do not feel.

"No." She says, her eyes trained on me, fierce and judging. "And I've never seen your friend before. But his markings are the brightest of all."

"Which friend?" I ask, but it might as well have not been asked at all.

Not Blake, of course, and I can't think of anyone else that Granny Carne would not have seen before, that she could even remotely relate to me as a friend.

But she answers for me anyway.

"Why, your friend from last night. The boy from the sea."

* * *

><p><em>I am so sorry if this disappointed your expectations :'( I despise this chapter wholly. The ideas within it are so BLEH, but in my defense, I did follow my original plot! XD <em>_I will one day change it, after I have finished all my other exams :'( (Exam week soon, SO CLOSE! D: Where did all my time go? IMPOSSIBRU!)_

_I went to Devon (neighbouring Cornwall) over the last week ^^  
><em>_Funny thing is that when I looked around there, I could imagine that it could be where Ingo took place! :)_ _The sea in South-West England is so blue and so pure ^^ And its really hilly! I was surprised because most of the houses looked like they were on cliffs!  
><em>_I tried some 'traditional food' there, well, I was told it was traditional anyway: clotted cream and jam on scones. Es war sehr lecker, but I wonder if Sapphy ever ate anything like that? :) Anyway, the journey from where I live to Devon took 7 hours in total by car, and at the end of it, my back had died slowly and fallen off ;_;  
><em>_At least it was worth it though! Devon is definately on my list of the most naturally beautiful places to see! :) Full of fields, forests, cliffs, blue skies and seas ^^  
><em>_We also stopped by Winchester on the way and I saw Jane Austens grave! O.O She is one of my great literny heroes, and Winchester Cathedral is very nice in itself! :)  
><em>_I hope I get to see Cornwall itself some day, and if I do, I will be sure to walk down the beach and keep an eye out for anyone that may be waiting for me there! XD -jokes-_

(Sorry for this note being so long, I'll be sure to shorten it next time! ^^;)

**Read my second draft from the link on my profile :)**

I love reviews... hint hint hint ;D


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